Exhibitors Herald (Dec 1921 - Mar 1922)

March 4. 1922 EXHIBITORS HERALD 55 Read Page 45 To those exhibitors who believe that the censorship menace is a thing of the past, read the story published on page 45 of this issue of the "Herald" under the caption, "Tirades of Reformers Fail to Affect Legislative Body." PUBLIC RIGHTS LEAGUE Screen Message No. 44 It should hardly be necessary at this late date in the history of this free nation to assert that a citizen should be permitted to spend the Sabbath in any innocent manner he chooses — including attending a theatre if that be his choice. PUBLIC RIGHTS LEAGUE. Bigots Raise Devil With Moral Theatres Counteract Jnfair Press Stories Messages Flashed on Screens Of Houses Owned in Chicago By Jones, Linick & Schaefer I wonder how many theatre owners have ought to clear the name of the motion picture idustry following the unfair treatment acorded it in the daily newspapers which have ublished lurid stories about the William D. 'aylor tragedy in Los Angeles? This daily misrepresentation of the industry nd its people presents to the theatre owner ne of his greatest problems and one that may e solved only through the dissemination of ounter propaganda. Exhibitors who have been jathe to use their screens in the presentation f PUBLIC RIGHTS LEAGUE messages hould emulate the activities of Jones, Linick & 'chaefer, owners of a string of loop houses in hicago. On the screens of their nine loop theatres, ones, Linick & Schaefer flash this message aily : "Don't believe the lurid sensational stories you read about the motion picture industry and its people. You can easily realize that people of the calibre of Hon. Will H Hays, Mrs. Mary Roberts Rinehart, Rupert Hughes and Sir Gilbert Parker would not risk their invaluable reputations by an association with an industry, and its people, that was not clean and moral in every respect. The people of the movies are just plain home folk no different than other humans." * * * This message should be flashed on the screen f every theatre in the country. The weird and ild tales published in the daily newspapers of le country will leave their impression on the ublic unless the industry itself acts immeiately to counteract such misrepresentation. In the February 4 issue of the Herald this epartment published the statement of a resient at Grand Junction, Colo. This person. riting to the Grand Junction Sentinel, declared •at "the movie hasn't defended itself, or its idustry." A great opportunity to defend their business now offered to every exhibitor. The unformate occurrence in Los Angeles offers the revisers campaign material. Are you going to t them capitalize it? Evil .bxists in Reformer s Mind Reformers would have the public believe that the motion picture is the greatest evil today, yet — Just the other day in a Chicago court Judge Haas sentenced a man who had been quarreling with his wife to take her to a motion picture theatre every Saturday night and to church every Sunday morning. The evil of the motion picture exists only in the mind of the reformer. Facts Don t Li le Newspaper Stories Prove Fallacy of Reform Statements Reformers have stated, and have impressed many with their pseudo sincerity, that motion pictures were having a detrimental effect upon the country's younger generation. Facts do not bear out this statement. A test conducted among .'00,000 students show that: Twenty thousand students averaged only 46 per cent on ten questions about motion pictures, baseball and football. Of 500 seniors a majority knew more about national and international questions than they did about pictures or sports. This survey was conducted by the Institute for Public Service at New York City. Which are more reliable, reformers' state ments or facts? First Sunday Show Permitted by Mayor Mich igan Pastor Says That Reformers Are Driving the Young People of Today Mad The world is sadly in need of more men of the calibre of Clarence Juillerat, mayor of Huntington, Ind., and C. C. Shoemaker, pastor of the Community church at Port Austin, Mich. These men are sincere advocates of tolerance and individual liberty. They are champions of !•' v' belief that "the Sabbath was made lor man, n~t man for the Sabbath." On a Sunday recently the theatres owned by The Jefferson Amusement Company at Huntington were permitted to open and operate without interference, the first time in the history of the city. The management of the houses was arrested on Monday, tried on the following day ::nd acquitted. Mayor Juillerat is to be highly commended for his sane and tolerant attitude toward Sunday observance. Though his advocacy of individual liberty may provoke the antagonism of the bigotted clergy of Huntington, he has the profound support of the majority of the citizens of this country. I quote the following excerpt from a sermon by C. C. Shoemaker of Port Austin to show that ministers are not unanimous in their oppositidn to Sunday amusements and other activities outside the church: * * * " 'God, I thank Thee that I am not as other men are, who dance, play cards, smoke, drink, swear, go to Sunday movies and ball games. I read the Bible, go to church and prayer meeting every week. I'm a good Christian. Lord, look me over.' "This is the modern Pharisee's prayer, and in its effect upon others it is like waving a red flag at a bull. It drives young pople mad. It makes them hate religion and the Church, and literally drives them into all manner of evil. This generation of young people is as good or better than any other. They love real manhood and true womanhood, but they despise selfrighteousness and hypocrisy. It is the goodygoody acting and talking people who draw their self-righteous cloaks about them lest they be contaminated by the crowd — these are the people who are literally 'raising the devil' with the morals and everything else in this country." * * * Mr. Shoemaker is the pastor whose advocacy of Sunday amusements aroused the ire of Methodist officials, which resulted in the organization of the Community church and its separation from the Methodist church.